Day 1 - Arrival to Salvador, Brazil
We finally landed in Brazil after what seemed like a day of flying. After 2 ˝ years of planning we arrived in Salvador, Brazil for the World Cup. Our group had a total of 18 people. First we had to eat. Our group travel coordinator, an American (fluent in Portuguese), took us to a small Brazilian restaurant to watch the first game Brazil vs Croatia. The locals were passionate and you could feel the excitement as we watched the game. We chanted Brazil through the first half of the game. At half time we got up to leave the restaurant. When the Brazilian patrons realized many of us were Jamaican and started high fiving us. They chanted “Jamaica” as we walked out.

We were going to watch the rest of the game at the Pelourinho Historic Centre of Salvador da Bahia. There were big screen TV’s set up there for World Cup fans. The traffic getting there was bad. We listened to the game on the radio on the way there. When we got to the Pelourinho the place was packed with people. On every side street there were televisions tuned to the game. While we walked to the square at the Pelourinho we witnesses the jubilation of the Brazilian locals as they scored the 3rd and final goal of the match. The game ended just as we entered the square at the Pelourinho just in time to see the Oludum drummers leaving the concert. We were able to take a photo with 1 of the drummers. Brazil won the game 3-1. There was dancing and drumming by a women's group. It started to rain but no one cared. Some members of our group joined in the celebration dancing in the streets. The celebration was one I will never forget.

Leaving the Airport reminds me of Fern Gully in Jamaica

The hustling of Brazilian shirts was on every corner

Just a random photo of a man riding his bike.

Brazil flag were on almost every car

Young men doing Capoeira which is a a Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance, acrobatics and music.

Day 2 - The World Cup Game - Spain vs Netherlands
The traffic getting to the stadium for the game was gridlocked. It took us 2 hours to get to the area around the stadium. There were barriers and roadblocks everywhere. We decided that it was best to get out the van and walk to the stadium. I am glad we walked as we got to see the neighborhood and the people.

Everyone in our group had different seating assignments in the stadium so we decided on a meeting spot. My wife and I entered the stadium. It was beautiful. We took a few photos with fans from other countries. Some had wild costumes. Next we started to search for food. There were signs everywhere for hot dogs, hamburgers and popcorn. The options for drinks were water, beer and Coca Cola. There was popcorn everywhere. I went from one concession stand to another searching for hotdogs. No hot dogs or hamburgers were being sold at any of the concession stands. We eventually got tired of running around and found a concession stand with Coca Cola. I needed some sugar. We stood in line for 45minutes to be told that there was no Coca Cola left. My only option was now water as I did not drink beer (love it on Barbeque chicken though).

We got into our seats just in time to see the singing of anthems and the kick-off. The fans from the Netherlands outnumbered the Spain from fans by approximately 10 to 1. There were barely any Spanish fans there. That may have been a good thing as the Netherlands team dominated Spain even though they had scored first. At half time I went back out thinking maybe they would serve food but there was nothing. If there is one thing they "messed up" it was this. They lost a great opportunity to make some money. A lot of fans were unhappy.

The fans sang songs and did the wave during the match. Many of the Brazilian fans taunted "Diego" who turned down the Brazilian team to play for Spain. They sang "Diego Die-ago". I was not sure what it meant but they seemed to be happy his team lost. Netherlands won 5-1.

The atmosphere after the game was wild as the fan from Netherlands were in high spirits singing and dancing their way out the stadium.

We were able to regroup fairly quickly and walked to the minivan. We spent approximately 1 ˝ hours in traffic. We went to a seafood restaurant for a late dinner. We watched the game between Chile vs Australia there.

Day 3 - Tour of the the Pelourinho Historic Centre of Salvador da Bahia, Brazillian Ballet and more matches
Everyone was up late. We had a long night. That morning at breakfast we had a acerola cherries. Not the American type but the ones we had in Jamaica. We were getting ready to go back to the Pelourinho for a guided tour . Our historic tour guide met us in the town lookout and explained the different levels of the city being built to defend against invaders. She took us on a guided tour of the nearby museum where we learned more about the city, but we were not allowed to take photos. There was a church in the museum with amazing decorations and sculptures. As we walked through the Pelourinho Historic Centre of Salvador da Bahia you could see kids playing football (soccer) everywhere. Brazil felt like the center of everything football.

Once we finished the tour we had lunch at a little "hole" in the wall restaurant in the area. The food was great. We stayed there and watched the Uruguay vs Costa Rica game. Once the game was over we went to explore and shop. Next up was the Balé Folclorico da Bahia Ballet/Performance. It was not a formal event and I was not sure what to expect. The curtains rose and there were 4 drummers with 2 ladies singing songs that sounded like they were from Africa. Then the dancers entered. The energy was amazing.

The performance seemed to take you through a history of black culture in Brazil with acrobatic moves and the famous capoeira (Brazilian martial arts). It was a breathtaking performance not your traditional ballet. There is no photo or video allowed so I was unable to capture any of the performances. The dancers met with us at the end of the show.

After the performance we did more walking around. A gentleman walked up to me shouting Jamaica and started to talk in Portuguese. He was excited. He grabbed me and hugged me. We took a picture and he gave his card pointing at his email. He wanted me to send it back. When I travel internationally I wear Jamaican shirts as I find people will instantly strike up a conversation. In all my travels I have never been greeted this warmly before.